Louis XIV

Contributions to the Revolution

Louis XIV, the king of France, dictated irrefutable rule on France and fought
a series of wars trying to dominate Europe. Louis's unwavering aim was to
glorify France, to grid its defenses on the northern and eastern frontiers,
and to prevent any resurgence of the power of the Hapsburg dynasty, which
had formerly threatened France on two sides by its control over Spain and
Germany. In 1661, Louis had spent $100 million dollars to build the
Versailles Palace. Finally in 1715, Louis died leaving his country
in debt from the money he spent supporting the arts.

Foreign Wars

In 1667, declaring his wife's right of endowment, Louis invaded the
Spanish Netherlands. Later in 1672, he gathered an army against Holland which gave him the
Franche-Comte region and most forts in Flanders. While his armies
were battling Dutch Protestants, Louis had been denying religious liberty
to the Protestants (Huguenots) of France and tightening control over his
Roman Catholic clergy. In 1685, determined to force conversion of the Huguenots, he revoked their
charter of liberties, the Edict of Nantes, forcing more than 200,000 into
exile and igniting the Camisards' revolt. Louis' last military venture, the War of the Spanish Succession, stemmed
from his acceptance of the Spanish throne in behalf of his grandson, Philip.
Louis's armies, opposed by an alliance if the European powers, lost most
of the major battles, but won control of Spain